1. Technical Field
The invention relates to the technical field of apparatus comprising pre-cut materials wound into a coil or folded into a “Z”, especially for wiping materials like paper towels, toilet paper, kitchen roll, paper, cellulose wadding, or non-woven material.
2. Description of the Related Art
For a proper understanding of the invention, it is necessary to reiterate the various research and development activities carried out by the Applicant which have helped find a new solution for the distribution of pre-cut materials.
The Applicant has developed a device for dispensing pre-cut wiping materials, the subject of French Patent 2 931 350. This device is of the type that comprises a casing forming a receptacle with a bottom plate, a lower horizontal wall and lateral walls with a hinged lid on an axis. This device further comprises an articulated shutter relative to the walls of the casing in the lower part thereof, according to this patent instruction. This component is clipped with respect to the said walls to enable it to be positioned in a vertical plane. In its upper part, the shutter preferably has a curvilinear shape, and in its lower part, a central cut that is substantially semi-circular to allow dispensing of the pre-cut wiping material. The lid also has on its underside a central cut similar to the aforementioned cut. The said central cuts on the shutter and the lid have the sole function of enabling the strip of material to be released after it is held and pulled out by the user.
The wiping material (M) in this implementation is provided in the form of a strip that is pre-cut and wound into a coil, or it can be in a pre-folded Z position.
According to the French patent cited above, the lower part of the apparatus at the place of release of the material has opposing stops on either side of the strip of material while ensuring the separation of a part of the strip with respect to the pre-cut line facing the strip. The pull force will ensure that at the end of the strip, between the front wall of the shutter and the side opposite the lid facing the lid, a part of the strip is separated with respect to the rest of the coil or the stack of material folded into a Z due to the said stops. According to this patent, it has been clarified that the said stops can be adjusted into position on either side of the outlet for release of the strip of material by appropriate sliding means.
The Applicant has observed that there is a wrinkling effect on the strip of material at the outlet due to the effect of shrinkage of the strip of material when it passes between the stops. In principle, this does not cause a problem as most users do not give importance to the presentation of the strip of material, which is then cut by forcibly folding the strip while operating the apparatus as a paper towel, kitchen roll, etc.
However, to address this issue, the Applicant has designed a new device that is the subject of the patent FR 2960760. Briefly, the apparatus comprises a casing with a hinged lid arranged on an axis, and a shutter hinged on the side walls of the casing. The strip of material which is pre-cut or pre-folded into a Z is likely to bypass the upper curvilinear part placed at the top end of the shutter. The strip of material (M) thus passes against the shutter and the inner side of the lid. In its lower part, the lid has a central cut. The shutter also has a central cut for the passage and release of the strip of material. The shutter and the lid have additional pairs of curvilinear rainbow-shaped forms that may partially fit together during the passage of the strip of material. More specifically, these parts are the ribs and grooves.
In the context of this patent FR 2960760 and to minimize any effect of wrinkling of the material during its passage between the complementary fitting elements, it is intended that the strip of material is fully wound between the shutter and the inner wall of the lid, without lateral deformation, and by projecting on either side the male-female complementary elements positioned according to the rib-grooves provided on the shutter and the lid, without any stops. There are several complementary elements that constitute grooves and ribs and are rainbow-shaped, according to substantially greater amplitude than 180°. These elements are arranged directly or with an additional means of reducing space between certain parts of the ribs and grooves to enable and facilitate the separation of a section of the strip of material, when pulled by the user. These elements form a constant section in terms of the height throughout their curvilinear configuration and the height is strictly the same for each pair of grooves or ribs. It is possible for the sets of ribs-grooves formed on the casing not to be concentric with the sets of ribs-grooves formed on the lid. However, the heights are exactly the same.
The purpose of this complementary means comprising protruding elements that form teeth is to narrow the space between the grooves and the ribs during the fitting. This space reduction leads to the formation of zones for retaining the strip of material that will facilitate the initial part of the tearing section. These indentations or teeth are arranged in the lower end of the concentric rainbow-shaped element, and favor the separability of the material if pulled forcibly.
This material passes between the complementary rib-groove elements. The objective behind this invention to prevent wrinkling of the strip of material is not fully achieved due to problems related to the thickness of the materials found on the market and offered by many manufacturers. Furthermore and as in the French patent FR 2 931 350, the central cuts formed on the shutter and the lid have the sole and exclusive purpose of allowing the strip of material to be released while it is held and pulled by the user.
The Applicant has also developed in the French patent application 1058449 an apparatus for dispensing wiping material, comprising a fastening casing that consists of a hinged lid for closing it; the casing has a removable fixed module. This module is itself arranged with a shutter placed opposite the inner side of the lid; the strip of material passes between the shutter and the internal wall of the lid. The central cuts formed on the lid and the shutter still have the same functions as indicated previously.
The Applicant has also developed an improved apparatus for the passage of the strip of material between the shutter and the inner wall of the lid. This solution is described and illustrated in the French patent FR 1161439.
The casing forms a receptacle for the wiping material that is pre-cut or pre-folded. The lid is hinged in relation to the casing. The shutter is mounted between the side flanges of the casing. In the plane above the said shutter, a reversing rod is provided. It is mounted in free rotation between the flanges of said casing, in order to allow the return of the pulled strip of material between the shutter and the inner side of the lid. The inner side of the lid and the visible side opposite the shutter are arranged with pairs of grooves and ribs. The solution, according to French patent FR 1161439, aims to form and place a crescent-shaped support area between the pair of ribs and grooves of a smaller diameter and the opening formed on the shutter and the lid, in order to facilitate the passage of the material.
According to this patent, the lower end portions of the pairs of ribs-grooves are arranged with protruding and transverse recessed elements respectively on the ribs of the shutter and the lid and then into the grooves of the shutter and the lid. Specifically, the shutter and the lid are arranged at the end portion of the pairs of ribs and grooves with a flattened transversal flap of minimum thickness which allows the positioning and the securing of a flexible strip made of a different and deformable material on the receiving flap. The strips have a configuration complementary to the ribs and grooves to ensure continuity with the latter. The height of the ribs is always constant. The central cuts formed on the lid and the shutter still have the same functions as indicated previously.
In another embodiment described in French patent FR 1161439, the shutter and the lid have a number of pairs of complementary elements opposing it. They are rainbow-shaped and capable of fitting into each other after the lid is closed. The said complementary elements are corrugated and have, alternately, successive curved and recessed shapes, thus avoiding any roughness or a cutting area with one or more sharp edges. Moreover, in combination, one of the corrugated elements, either on the shutter or on the inner part of the lid, has in a transverse position and near its end a recessed cavity with a curvilinear or a semicircular profile. In addition, in combination, the said cavity is bordered by a corrugated end part having the same curvature as the waves formed either on the shutter or the inner portion of the lid. The said corrugated end part adjacent to the recessed cavity constitutes on its inner side a stop zone for the pulled strip of material. All the said corrugated parts have a regular shape. Furthermore, the central cuts formed on the lid and the shutter still have the same functions as indicated previously.
In practice, all the previously explained solutions of the Applicant demonstrate ongoing research to constantly improve the operating conditions of these devices dispensing pre-cut strips of materials. There are issues related to the highly substantial variations in the quality of such materials, in terms of their thicknesses, weights, wadding, and non-woven materials (these are cited as non-exhaustive examples). The multiplicity of filings of patents by the Applicant, who has more than 40 years of experience in this type of device (first filing in 1968), shows the difficulty in solving all these problems.